Google Acquires North • Hacker News Board

Re: Google Acquires North

#31

Post by syshum » Tue, Jun 30, 2020, 4:05 PM UTC

tazjin wrote: post #5

lordnacho wrote: post #4

Cool, who here has tried Focals by North? I was thinking of getting them for everyday walking around and reading. My problem is I still don't understand what the interface is like. Can it project a screen to it or not? I'm perfectly happy to see a translucent IDE/browser window in my field of view.

Getting them now is probably not a good idea, because: > The first-gen North Focals glasses won't work after July 31, 2020, but North is issuing refunds to people who bought the smartglasses https://support.bynorth.com/hc/en-us/articles/360045128691

When will people learn to not buy hardware that needs cloud support to function

At least they are giving out refunds, unlike other companies that have shutdown, but still.

Things like this is why I am a firm member of the selfhosted club

Re: Google Acquires North

#32

Post by wuunderbar » Tue, Jun 30, 2020, 4:06 PM UTC

Slackwise wrote: post #19

Smart Glasses?! Please! I've been waiting since forever. This is the only "smart" tech I've been so interested in. I already wear glasses, why not make them more useful? Meanwhile watches get in the way of using keyboards and interacting with things, and you constantly take them off. Can't use them if your hand is busy either, like holding a drink. They're not as convenient as they seem.

Think the watches are primarily suppose to be used on the go. Like working out, walking around town or glancing at while driving.

Not sitting at a desk with a Mountain Dew in one hand and your mouse in the other. Synced desktop notification or smartphone on a stand seems like a better option for that.

Re: Google Acquires North

#33

Post by chimerasaurus » Tue, Jun 30, 2020, 4:07 PM UTC

DiabloD3 wrote: post #15

Sigh, all I can think is yet another promising startup vanishes into the depths of Google, never to be seen again. Google, please stop buying companies, please learn to support your products and build a loyal customer base. You are not a startup anymore, you need to make the transformation that companies like Microsoft did, and quit moving fast and breaking things. People don't want an agile foundation, they want a h…

Disclaimer - I’m a Googler.

As a counterpoint, Cloud has acquired several companies that haven’t disappeared; rather, are fairly foundational in the portfolio:

- Cask (now Cloud Data Fusion as a product, CDAP as an OSS project)

- Looker

- Stackdriver

Re: Google Acquires North

#34

Post by sidcool » Tue, Jun 30, 2020, 4:07 PM UTC

DiabloD3 wrote: post #15

Sigh, all I can think is yet another promising startup vanishes into the depths of Google, never to be seen again. Google, please stop buying companies, please learn to support your products and build a loyal customer base. You are not a startup anymore, you need to make the transformation that companies like Microsoft did, and quit moving fast and breaking things. People don't want an agile foundation, they want a h…

I agree with your sentiment but I also feel that a hundred year foundation starts with nimbleness and agility in mind.

Re: Google Acquires North

#35

Post by sidcool » Tue, Jun 30, 2020, 4:07 PM UTC

chimerasaurus wrote: post #33

DiabloD3 wrote: post #15

Sigh, all I can think is yet another promising startup vanishes into the depths of Google, never to be seen again. Google, please stop buying companies, please learn to support your products and build a loyal customer base. You are not a startup anymore, you need to make the transformation that companies like Microsoft did, and quit moving fast and breaking things. People don't want an agile foundation, they want a h…

Disclaimer - I’m a Googler. As a counterpoint, Cloud has acquired several companies that haven’t disappeared; rather, are fairly foundational in the portfolio: - Cask (now Cloud Data Fusion as a product, CDAP as an OSS project) - Looker - Stackdriver

Firebase?

Re: Google Acquires North

#36

Post by morelikeborelax » Tue, Jun 30, 2020, 4:08 PM UTC

ladyanita22 wrote: post #6

I just can't see how these are better than smartwatches.

It's early but imagine a world where your vision is enhanced with overlays and information about your surroundings. Where your task cna be visually aided. Where sight disabilities can be corrected.

This has been military, sci-fi and video game HUD territory for so long, but that can change.

Re: Google Acquires North

#37

Post by judge2020 » Tue, Jun 30, 2020, 4:09 PM UTC

rattray wrote: post #14

North was previously known as Thalmic labs, and their first product was the Myo, a gesture-based input device. More recently, they created Focals, a smart glasses product. More on their blog here: https://www.bynorth.com/

Video of Myo: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jOEcsNmTk7g

Re: Google Acquires North

#38

Post by latenightcoding » Tue, Jun 30, 2020, 4:12 PM UTC

Thalmic Labs/North helped to normalize the act of exaggerating the capabilities of your tech, lying to investors, raising millions of dollars and pivoting to something completely unrelated. We have to stop celebrating tech companies that are able to raise millions of dollars and still fail to deliver.

Re: Google Acquires North

#39

Post by bvhg3 » Tue, Jun 30, 2020, 4:14 PM UTC

Slackwise wrote: post #19

Smart Glasses?! Please! I've been waiting since forever. This is the only "smart" tech I've been so interested in. I already wear glasses, why not make them more useful? Meanwhile watches get in the way of using keyboards and interacting with things, and you constantly take them off. Can't use them if your hand is busy either, like holding a drink. They're not as convenient as they seem.

Do you think you'll be able to opt out of location tracking with google's smart glasses?

Re: Google Acquires North

#40

Post by rvz » Tue, Jun 30, 2020, 4:15 PM UTC

DiabloD3 wrote: post #15

Sigh, all I can think is yet another promising startup vanishes into the depths of Google, never to be seen again. Google, please stop buying companies, please learn to support your products and build a loyal customer base. You are not a startup anymore, you need to make the transformation that companies like Microsoft did, and quit moving fast and breaking things. People don't want an agile foundation, they want a h…

> Google, please stop buying companies, please learn to support your products and build a loyal customer base. You are not a startup anymore, you need to make the transformation that companies like Microsoft did, and quit moving fast and breaking things.

It's actually not Google's fault. It's the founders of these startups who can't resist their offer nor can they do anything to control the company once they have taken lots of venture capital and are driven for an exit.

Snap resisted acquisition from Facebook and Google. Dropbox resisted Apple buying them, so the fault isn't with the acquirers. It's all the founders fault for accepting it.